Mitchell & Latham help New Zealand defeat Pakistan in the Tri Series Final and lift the trophy by 5 wickets
An exciting Trophy-Deciding clash between Pakistan & New Zealand took place in the National Bank Stadium of Karachi as the two rivals collided versus each other in the 'Final' of the Triangular series. This match proved to be a thrilling and entertaining one as the Karachi crowd witnessed the Mitchell Santner-led team lift the trophy. This Tri-Series win also allowed the Kiwis to get used to the Pakistani conditions ahead of Champions Trophy 2025.
Having opted to bat first, the Mohammad Rizwan-led team managed to put up a mere score of just 242 runs on the board as the four wicket haul of Kiwi seamer Will O'Rourke helped his team to bundle out the home side in 49.3 overs despite a good partnership between Salman Ali Agha and captain Mohammad Rizwan.
The hosts got off to a shaky start to their inning as explosive opening batter Fakhar Zaman was sent back to the pavilion for an early shower by Will O'Rourke in the fourth over with just 16 runs on the board for Pakistan.
Following an early setback, the duo of Babar Azam & Saud Shakeel got involved in a decent partnership of 30 runs for the second wicket but both of them got out in quick succession, leaving the Green Shirts at 54-3 in 11.5 overs.
The latter played a scratchy inning of eight runs in 14 deliveries while the former Pakistani captain scored 29 runs in 34 balls with the help of five fours and a big maximum.
Following the dimissals of Azam & Shakeel, the in-form batting duo of Mohammad Rizwan & Salman Ali Agha tried to initiate the recovery prosses of their team as they added 88 runs to the total.
The crucial partnership between the two culminated with the skipper's dismissal in the 32nd over while Salman also perished five overs later, leaving the Green Shirts at a struggling score of 161-5.
Captain Rizwan remained the top-scorer for the home team having played a slow inning of 46 runs off deliveries with the help of four fours and a six, while Agha played a 65-ball 45 runs inning with the assistance of one four and a six.
Tayyab Tahir, the middle-order Batsman stitched a small partnership with Khushdil Shah before both of them got dismissed in the span of eight balls. The former played a good knock of 38 runs in 33 balls including four boundaries and a six.
All-Rounder Faheem Ashraf and tailender Naseem Shah then added valuable runs in the backend phase of the innings as they helped their team get in the 200 runs region.
Both the players got involved in an important stand of 39 runs for the ninth wicket, which ended with Faheem's dismissal on the first ball of the 50th over.The 31-year-old played a good inning of 22 runs in 21 balls with the assistance of two fours, while Naseem on the other hand, made 19 runs.
Pacer Will O'Rourke was the best bowler of the game for the visitors, dismissing four Pakistani batters by giving away 43 runs in 9.3 overs, while spin bowling duo of Santner & Bracewell bagged two scalps each.
Talking about the innings of the Blackcaps, half-centuries from the duo of Daryl Mitchell and Tom Latham, allowed their team to win the triangular ODI series by defeating hosts Pakistan by a margin of five wickets at the National Bank Stadium of Karachi on Friday.
Chasing an easy target of 243 runs, the visiting team comfortably scored the winning runs at the expense of five wickets and 28 deliveries to spare. The Kiwis, however, started their chase on a shaky note as opening batter Will Young perished after scoring just five runs as Naseem Shah got the better of him with the new ball in the second over, with New Zealand having just five runs to their name on the scoreboard.
Following the early wicket, former captain Kane Williamson steadied the ship and got involved in a 71 runs stand with Devon Conway on the other end to put their team in a comfortable position.
Spin bowling all-rounder Salman Ali Agha got the breakthrough the Shaheens were after as he broke the partnership of Williamson & Conway by sending the former skipper back to dugout, who played a good hand of 34 runs in 49 balls with the help of three amazing fours and a maximum.
Devon Conway then went on to stitch a 31-run partnership with Daryl Mitchell before becoming the prey of Naseem Shah just before the half-way mark of the New Zealand inning.
The Southpaw scored 48 runw off 74 balls, with the help of five boundaries. Following his dismissal, Daryl Mitchell took matters in his own hands and partnered with wicketkeeper batter Tom Latham to add 87 runs to the total of the Kiwis and put their team in a comfortable position.
This all-important partnership between the two ended with the dismissal of Daryl Mitchell right after he brought up his fifty. He ended the game as the top run getter with a score of 57 runs in 58 balls with the assistance of six boundaries.
Tom Latham on the other hand, walked back to the dugout in the 45th over of the chase but he did all the dirty work as the remaining batters needed to score just 11 more runs to help their side emerge victorious. He smashed five boundaries in his 64 ball inning of 56 runs.
The in-form Glenn Phillips finished off the run chase with the help of an unbeaten 20-run cameo in the 46th over. For Pakistan, Naseem Shah claimed two wickets, while the trio of Abrar Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Agha shared three scalps each amongst each other.